The Pali Text Society's Pali-English dictionary - Tuninst.net

Kaya 35 Kaya
Kira [der. probably fr. oi, cinoti to heap up. cp. nik^ya
heaping up, accumulation or collection ; Sk. kaya]
group, heap, collection, aggregate, body. — Definitions
and synonyms. — SnA 31 gives the foil, synonyms and
similes of kaya: kuti, guha (Sn 772). deha, sandeha
(Dh 148 =Th I. 20), nSva (Dh 3O9), ratha (S iv.29.').
dhaja, vammika (M 1144), kutika (Th i, i); and at
KhA 38 the foil. def. : kaye ti satire, sarirar) hi asucisaAcayato
kucchitdnai) vS. kesadinai) iyabhutato kayo
tj vuccati. ... It is equivalent to deha: S 1.27;
PvA 10 ; to sarira KhA 38 ; PvA 63, to nikaya (deva")
D 111.264 : ^"d cp. formula of jSti : sattanarj tamhi
tamhi sattanikaye j4ti . . . Nd' 257.
Literal meaning.— i. mahajana-kaya a collection of
people, a crowd Siv.191 ; v.170; VvA 78; —bala° a
great crowd Sn p. 105 ; DhA 1.193. ^9^- — - group or
division : satta kaya akat3, etc. (seven eternal groups
or principles) D i.sO^M 1.517-8 111.211 (in Pakudha
KaccAyana's theory) ; with reference to groups of sensations
or sense-organs, as vedana-kaya, saftiiS°, vii\-
fiSna". phassa°. etc. S 111.60, 61 ; D 111.243, 244 ; tanha"
D IK. ; 244 appl. to hatthi", ratha", patti°, groups of
elephants, carriages or soldiers S 1.72. — A good idea
of the extensive meaning of kaya may be gathered from
the classification of the 7 kayas at J 11.91 ,
viz. camma°,
diru°, loha°, ayo°, valuka°, udaka", phalaka". or
" bodies " (great masses, substances) of skin, wood,
copper, iron, sand, water, and planks. — Var. other
comb"^: Asura° A 1.143 ; D 111.7 ; Abhassara" (" world
of radiance") D 1.17 = 111.29. 84; Deva° S 1.27, 30;
D 111.264 ("nikaya); dibba kaya A 1143; Tavatir)sa°
D III. 15.
Applied meaning.—I. Kaya under the physical
aspect is an aggregate of a multiplicity of elements
which finally can be reduced to the four " great
elements, viz. earth, water, fire, and air (D 1.55).
This
" heap." in the valuation of the Wise (muni), shares
with all other objects the qualities of such elements,
and is therefore regarded as contemptible, as something
which one has to get rid of. as a source of impurity. It
is subject to time and change, it is built up and kept
alive by cravings, and with death it is disintegrated
into the elements. But the kamma which determined
the appearance of this physical body has naturally been
renewed and assumes a new form. II. Kaya under the
psychological a.spect is the seat of sensation (Dhs §§013-
16). and represents the fundamental organ of touch
which underUes all other sensation. Developed only in
later thought DhsA. 3 1 1 cf . Mrs. Rhys Davids. Bud. Psy.
Ethics Ivi. fl. ; Bud. Psy. 143, 185 f.
I. (Physical).—(a) Understanding of the body is
attained through introspection (sati). In the group of
the four sati-palthanas, the foundations of introspection,
the recognition of the true character of " body " comes
first (see Vbh 103). The standing formula of this
recognition is kaye kay&nupassi . . . contemplating
body as an accumulation, on which follows the description
of this aggregate " : he sees that the body is clothed
in skin, full of all kinds of dirty matter, and that in this
body there are hair, nails, teeth." etc (the enumeration
of the 32 akaras, as given Kh iii.). The conclusions
drawn from this mrditation give a man the
right attitude. The formula occurs frequently, both in
full and abridged, e. g. D 11.293, 294: 111.104, 141 ;
A iu.323=v.io9 ; S 1v.1n_v.j7S; Vbh 193, 194;
Nett 83, 123; with slight variation: kaye asubhanupass!
... A III. 142 sq. ; v.iog (under a.subhasai)i\a)
it 81 ; cp. kSye aniccinupassi S iv.211 ; and kayngat.^
sati. — This accumulation is described in another
formula with: ayar) . . . kayo rupi catum(m)ahabhQtiko
mSia-pettika-sambhavo odana-kiimmas' upacayo.
etc. " this lx>Jy has form (i. e. is material, vi.stblc),
is born from mother and father, is a heap of gruel and
sour milk, is subject to constant dressing and tentling,
to breaking up and decay," etc., with inferences D
1.76,
l.55=S 111.207; S 11.94; IV. 194; V.282, 371) ; D
209; M 1. 144, 500; II. 17; A IV. 386 = 5 IV 83.
(b) Various quahtief und fuvcliovs of the n\.TltTi;\l
body. As trunk of the body (opposed to pakkha and
sisa) S 11.231 ; also at Pv 1.8^; as depending on nourish-
(with tanhn,
A 11. 145
ment (ahara-Ubitika, etc.) Sv.64 ;
mana, methuna) ; as needing attention: see 'pariharika.
As savii^fianaka, having consciousness A iv.53 =
S 11.252=5 111.80, 103, 136, 169; cp. aj-u usnia ca
vifii^anai) yada kayarj jahant' imar) S m.143. As in
need of breathing assasa-passasa S v. 330, 336 as ; tired,
fatigued (kilanta-kaya) kilanta-kaya kilanta.-citta tc
deva tamha kaya cavanti " tired in body, tired in mind
iii.325t)
these gods fall out of this assembly " (D 1.20 ;
in other connection PvA 43 ; sec also kilanta. kayo
kilanto D 111255 sq. ; =A iv.332 : S v.317; M 1.1 lO;
jinnassa me . . . kSyo na paleti Sn 1144; atura-kayo
5 111. I (cittai) anSturar)) paripunna-k" ;
suruci sujato,
etc., with a perfect body (of the Buddha) Sn 548 =
Th I, 818; cp. maha-k" (of Brahmins) Sn 298. The
body of a Buddha is said to bo endowed with the 32
signs of a great man :
Bhagavato kaye dvattir)sa maha-
purisa-lakkhanani . . . Sn p. 107, cp. 549. TheTathagata
is said to be dhamma-kayo " author and speaker
of Doctrine," in the same sense Brahma-kayo " the best
body " (i. e. of Doctrine) D 111.84 {Dial. iii. 81).
(c) Valuation 0/ physical body. From the contemplating
of its true character (kaySnupassi) follows its
estimation as a transient, decaying, and repulsive object.
— kaye anicc' anupassi S iv.211 (and vay' Snupassi,
nirodh' anupassi). so also asubh4nupassi It 81 ;
kayafi ca bhindantar) iiatva It 69 ; evagdhammo (i. c.
a heap of changing elements) A 111.324 ; acirarj vat'
ayai) kayo pafhavig adhisessati chuddho apetavinfiano
niratthar) va kalingarar) Dh 41. pittai) scnihaii ca
vamati kayamha Sn 198. As bahu-dukkho bahuadinavo
A v. 109 ; as anicca dukkha. etc. M 1.5(10 ; 11.17 ;
kayena attiyamanS harayamana S iv.62 ; v. 320
dissati imassa kayassa acayo pi apacayo pi adanani pi
nikkhepanam pi S 11.94. — This body is eaten by crows
and vultures after its death : S v. 371). Represented as
puti° foul S 1.131 ; III. 120. — Bdhgh. at Vism 240
defines kaya as " catu-mahabhutika piiti-kaya" (cp.
similar passages on p. : 367 patthaddho bhavati kayo,
putiko bhavati kayo).
(d) Similes.—Out of the great number of epithets
(adhivacanani) and comparisons only a few can be
The body is
mentioned (cp. above under def. & syn.) :
compared to an abscess (ganda) S iv.83 = A iv.386 ; a
city (nagara) S iv.194 ; a cart (rath.n) S iv.292 ; an ant-
all in reference to its consisting
hill (vammika) M 1.144 ;
of the four fundamental elements, cp. also : phcn'
flpamai) kiyai) imai) viditva " knowing that the body
is like froth " Dh 46 ; kumbh' flpamai) kayat) imai)
viditva nag?r' flpamar) cittaij idar) thapetva Dh 40:
the body is as fragile as a water-pot.
(c) Dissolution of the body is expressed in the standard
phrase: kayassa bhcda param marana . . ., J. e.
after death . . . upon which usually follows the mention
of one of the gatis, the destinies which the new kaya has
to experience, e. g. D 1.82, 107, 143, 162. 245, 247. 252 ;
111.96, 97, 146, i«i. 235; M 1.22 ; 5 1.94 ; ni.2(i ; Dh
140 ; It 12, 14 1. ; J 152 ; PvA 27. etc., etc. Cp. also iv.
IJ. {Psychological).—As the scat of feeling, k.lya is
the fifth in the enumeration of the senses (ayatanani).
It is ajjhattika as sense (i. e. subjective) and its object
is the tangible (photthabba). Tlic contact between
subject and object consists either in touching (i>husilv5)
or in sensing (viili^cyya). The formulas vary, but are
in essence the same all through, e. g. kSyavififlcyya
photthabba D 1.245;
D 111.226, 250. 269;
kSyena
M 1.33:
photlhabbao phusitv.l
n.42 ; S IV. 104. 112;
c' cva photthabba ca
kayena phusitv.l A v.ii : k5yo
D 111.102. Best to be grouped here is an application of
kaya in the sense of the self as experiencing a great joy ;